Belinda Jeffrey

A lot of people come up to me around the place asking what they should do to further their writing. Some have a manuscript half finished, some have ideas. The last woman to talk to me, at the George Calombaris event the other night, had some sample chapters and two publishers requesting to see the final as soon as she’s finished. My answer to everyone, no matter the stage of your writing, is to join, contact, and participate in workshops offered by Queensland Writers Centre. I would not be where I am today without them. Which is why it’s a pleasure to participate in the QWC Blog Tour.

Where do your words come from?

I watch too many movies than is probably healthy and read, read, read. I spend a lot of time wondering. Somewhere, in all of this comes an energy and urgency for a new story, an idea, that I simply must find the right words to express. Sometimes it’s like a babble inside my head and If I just relax, the right words will flow. The voice of a story is the most critical factor, for me, and finding the right words is about getting inside the right voice for the story.  It’s more subconscious than conscious. In fact, better words come when my own cognitive self shuts up.

There are people I know who are organisational freaks. They love having everything neat and tidy and in its place. It gives them a sense of peace and satisfaction. Finding the right words, for me, is just like that. I can’t completely rest until they’re all put down, neatly ordered, in just the right place.

Where did you grow up and where do you live now?

I grew up in Adelaide until grade 7.  I spent a lot of time with my family traveling with three other families on caravanning holidays. Fishing on jetty’s, building fires at night when our parents weren’t watching, getting lost in sand-dunes. My short story, The Hallelujah Roof, is based on events that happened to me in the first year we spent in Brisbane. But I’ve now spent more years as a Brisbanite than an Adelaidian so Brisbane is definitely home.

What’s the first sentence/line of your latest work?

Tom Downs came out backwards on the sand at Big Bend. (YA)

A mackerel is a fish you can eat. A holy mackerel is a fish you can believe in. (Adult)

What piece of writing do you wish you had written?

Wow. There are so many. It’s a toss up between Cloudstreet and The Book Thief, but today I’m going with The Book Thief. It’s so clever, so original, so moving.

What are you currently working towards?

In the short term I’m working towards finishing this next YA and I’m almost there. I’ve then got two adult novels half written that I want to finish. I’ll have to flip a coin to decide which one gets immediate attention.

Complete this sentence… the future of the book is…

Certain.

I can’t honestly see a future without books. Books in all different formats. I think the digital age will expand our accessibility to the printed word, not replace the printed, bound book.

This post is part of the Queensland Writers Centre blog tour, happening October to December 2009. To follow the tour, visit Queensland Writers Centre’s blog The Empty Page.